


reaching out

by sunflower_8



Series: calls to a friend [3]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Phone Calls & Telephones, character death referenced, vent - Freeform, what the fuck is this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:20:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22810033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunflower_8/pseuds/sunflower_8
Summary: the phone rings at nine pm(and pekoyama answers)
Relationships: Koizumi Mahiru & Pekoyama Peko, Koizumi Mahiru/Saionji Hiyoko (minor), Pekoyama Peko/Kuzuryuu Fuyuhiko (minor)
Series: calls to a friend [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1565959
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	reaching out

pekoyama isn’t expecting a call.

the future foundation had given them phones, but people hardly use them. they’re hardly ever far away from each other, so the need to call isn’t very pressing. as a whole, pekoyama prefers a conversation face to face, because it’s easier to see the other person’s thoughts and body language, and that makes it a lot easier to communicate.

still, she’s not going to decline a call. if someone’s awake and choosing to call her at nine pm, just before she prepares to sleep, they probably have good reason.

reason or not, she startles a little when she sees that the person calling her is koizumi.

pekoyama was expecting the caller to be ibuki or sonia, who often talk to her for some kind of comfort. they’ve seen her at absurd times, and sonia  _ is  _ the person who uses the phones the most. the fact that it isn’t either of them, it’s  _ koizumi,  _ is already surprising, since she hardly uses the phones and her and pekoyama… don’t exactly get on well. taking into consideration that she’s likely voicing some complaint, it becomes even more strange.

pekoyama answers immediately. “koizumi-san.” she greets politely.

there’s a small pause, and then- “pekoyama-san.” koizumi’s voice is meek and quiet, a sharp contrast to her usual clear and friendly tone. it makes pekoyama still. “i’m so sorry to bother you, i know it’s late, i-”

“koizumi-san, it’s fine. don’t worry.” pekoyama sits down on her bed, holding the phone with both hands. “is everything alright?”

as soon as pekoyama asks, koizumi lets out a sob. she continues to cry loudly, her breathing loud and inconsistent. when it seems to ease a little, she gasps out, “i’m sorry, i don’t know what’s wrong with me, i-”

“there’s no reason to apologize.” pekoyama says softly. “we all struggle.”

“i feel-” koizumi breathes heavily- “like i’m failing  _ everyone,  _ that i can’t be a good leader or person, that guilt is weighing me down and it’s my fault for being so weak. i criticize men all the time but i’m just as weak as i say they are.” pekoyama stays quiet, allowing the other to finish. “and... and i get nightmares, but they aren’t that bad, and i don’t have to deal with the same guilt that people like hinata deal with. but... but i  _ killed  _ someone, pekoyama-san, and… and i know that my relationship with everyone on this island is just waiting to fall apart and… and i don’t know how to be strong.” she lets out another sob as she finishes, and pekoyama can hear sheets shuffling. after a few seconds, she decides to speak.

“i... firstly, i apologize that you’re experiencing this. but i assure you, you aren’t weak. i don’t know a lot about you, and i don’t want to make assumptions, but you seem to shoulder other people’s problems without giving yourself time to properly… cope. nobody is going to be mad if you make a mistake. i’m sure everyone will treat you kindly.”

“i- thank you, pekoyama-san.” koizumi still sounds upset, like she wants to say something but is rethinking it. the swordswoman waits for her. “i worry that if i ever show my real emotions, everyone will get concerned.”

“we’ll get concerned because we care.” pekoyama replies.

“yeah, but… but i don’t want people to be upset. or dealing with my shit atop of theirs. sometimes, i feel like i  _ should  _ reach out, because hiyoko has told me a thousand times that she wants to comfort me and the others do too, but i just  _ can’t.  _ because hiyoko hasn’t even told me what goes on in her nightmares, so i can’t unload this onto her. but it has to go somewhere, so i called you, and i think that’s even worse because i already know you probably don’t care about me, and that’s understandable, i-”

“koizumi-san.” pekoyama doesn’t like interrupting people, especially when they’re expressing something so personal to them. however, there’s a very clear misconception here, one that makes pekoyama feel some kind of physical pain. she gives herself impunity, then. “i know we have a difficult history, to phrase it simply, but when did you ever receive the impression that i don’t care about you?”

“i killed kuzuryuu-san.” koizumi says, her volume barely above a whisper.

“and i killed you.”

“but the difference is, you didn’t  _ actually  _ kill me.” 

“but you didn’t bring the blade to kuzuryuu-san, did you?” koizumi sighs sadly, and pekoyama inhales. “koizumi-san, we can debate this forever. however, when we consider it carefully, it’s something that was spawned from a bad situation we are no longer in. i harbor no ill will to you; it’s been almost a year since we escaped the simulation, after all. fuyuhiko doesn’t harbor ill will either.”

“that’s impossible.” she breathes.

“koizumi-san, you need to forgive yourself.”

there’s a long moment of silence. all pekoyama can hear is the wind outside her cottage and koizumi’s soft breaths. eventually, the photographer quietly says, “thank you, pekoyama-san. i’m sorry for bothering you with this.”

“it wasn’t a bother.” pekoyama hopes koizumi takes the honesty to heart.

“... alright. goodnight, pekoyama-san.”

pekoyama sets the phone on the bedside table gently. “goodnight.”

(the next day, pekoyama notes that koizumi seems a little more honest, a little more sad. as pekoyama promised, everyone gives her space and time to heal, the time she never gave herself. pekoyama, on the other hand, initiates a conversation with her, one that’s longer than a few sentences briefly exchanged. it feels like something’s changing.)

**Author's Note:**

> i'm seriously so sorry i'm constantly posting vents this ENTIRE SERIES is just vents but like. ugh. sorry.
> 
> on today's episode of people probably hate sunflower because she's literally so unstable all the time and never has any character progression or redeeming qualities *finger guns*
> 
> stay safe, guys. also, this isn't part of femslash february. this has nothing to do with the prompt "at work", and it's way less ship-y than it was initially (the ship would have been peko x mahiru). so yeah. my bad.


End file.
